http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/Young-but-distant-gallaxies-tp839193p1079042.html
I'd welcome some clarification too. I think there's a dilemma in that many
for 80 years that the two are one and the same, theoretically, i.e. making a
hopeless mess of it IMHO. I think our best information is that information
> -----Original Message-----
> From:
[hidden email] [mailto:
[hidden email]] On
> Behalf Of Günther Greindl
> Sent: Monday, September 08, 2008 4:14 PM
> To: The Friday Morning Applied Complexity Coffee Group
> Subject: Re: [FRIAM] Young but distant gallaxies
>
> Doug,
>
> > I have not read "On the Origin of Objects"; I may browse it if I ever
> > have some free time.
>
> I think you would find it quite to your liking - the author himself
> would say that he is _not_ a reductionist.
>
> I have read all the comments in this thread, and I think we have been
> talking a bit past each other.
>
> The main interest here on the list seems to be in explanation and
> prediction - epistemology.
>
> My concerns with reductionism are purely ontological - as a philsopher,
> I am concerned with the ultimate nature of reality. Science of course
> can be done in lots of manners, and in the wake of logical positivism
> is
> often done in an instrumental way (I think that is quite detrimental,
> but that is another topic for another day...)
>
> So I think we were actually talking past each other: you were talking
> about levels of description (exclusively), and I was talking about
> ontology (albeit a new form of ontology, see the Cantwell-Smith book,
> which deviates very much from tratitional philosophical considerations
> on this topic).
>
> > Don't get me wrong: I do not totally reject reductionism. Well,
> > actually, I do, as regards to finding any utility in it for myself.
> But
> > other people seem to swear by it, and I am truly happy for them.
>
> Agreed :-) Science profits from an abundance of ideas. I have never
> understood why in science everybody is bashing at each other. More
> harmony could be expected, after all, we all have the common goal of
> understanding the world.
>
> Cheers,
> Günther
>
>
> --
> Günther Greindl
> Department of Philosophy of Science
> University of Vienna
>
[hidden email]
>
> Blog:
http://www.complexitystudies.org/> Thesis:
http://www.complexitystudies.org/proposal/>
>
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